Syngenta in talks after DowDupont merger

Syngenta is reportedly in talks with Monsanto, ChemChina and other rivals, but the company has yet to accept an offer, Syngenta chairman Michel Demare recently told a Swiss newspaper. While the company entertained and rejected offers from both Monsanto and ChemChina in 2015, the recent merger agreement between Dow Chemical and DuPont to create a more than $100 billion company and the world’s largest agribusiness has Syngenta pulling back up to the table.

"Given what shareholders expect for the next 12 months, going it alone is hardly possible," Demare told Finanz und Wirtschaft in an interview, adding that market dynamics had changed during 2015.

Demare also told the paper that Syngenta is considering different options, including making an acquisition, merging with a rival or selling the company

Last year, the Swiss company rejected several offers from Monsanto, the last of which was a proposal of 470 Swiss francs per share ($47 billion) in cash and stock and a $3 billion reverse breakup fee. However, Syngenta said the offer “significantly undervalued the company and was fraught with execution risk.”

Monsanto ended the pursuit Aug. 26, 2015, but state-owned China National Chemical Corp., also known as ChemChina, picked up where Monsanto left off with its own series of offers to Syngenta.

ChemChina first offered approximately 449 francs per share ($42 billion) in cash but was rejected for the same grounds as Monsanto’s offers.

Bloomberg reported that ChemChina more recently offered to purchase 70% of Syngenta for 470 francs per share ($44 billion), with an option to acquire the remaining 30% at a later time. Along with this proposal, ChemChina reportedly included a new offer to buy the whole company.

Syngenta is ready to discuss deals with anyone in the industry, including Monsanto, interim chief executive John Ramsay told Dow Jones recently.

Ramsay also told Dow Jones that a deal with ChemChina would face lower regulatory hurdles than a deal with a Western rival.